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Apology after paper issued details of writ which had been dropped

Below are summaries of the latest complaints involving the regional press which have been resolved between the parties involved, with help from the Press Complaints Commission.

Castle Point Echo Beverly Wilkes complained that an article was inaccurate when she was quoted in relation to the police’s discovery of a suspected cannabis factory close to her home. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following correction and apology: “The Echo carried a report (page two, June 6) of a police raid on a house in Canvey where cannabis plants were believed to have been found. Beverly Wilkes, of St Mark’s Road, Canvey, is quoted in the article as a witness to the police activity at the house, in St Michael’s Road. We acknowledge that Mrs Wilkes gave no information to us about this event and that the person quoted gave us a false identity. We apologise for any distress or embarrassment this may have caused to Mrs Wilkes and her family.”

Milton Keynes Citizen Theresa Ferguson, of Northants, complained that the newspaper had printed details of a writ against her, despite the writ having been dropped before publication. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper, which had taken a report on the writ from an agency and did not know that it had been dropped, published the following update: “The case against a woman accused of e-mailing a list of company contacts to her husband minutes before she quit her job has been dropped. Milton Keynes company Tensator issued a writ against Theresa Ferguson, of Wheatley Avenue, in Corby, accusing her of e-mailing the list before she handed in her notice. The writ stated Ms Ferguson, who entirely disputed the claim, then went to work for a rival company and by e-mailing the list she was in breach of restrictive covenants in her contract. The High Court writ was made publicly available on June 18 but the case was resolved before the publication of a previous article in the Evening Telegraph and no action was taken or was forthcoming towards Ms Ferguson.”

Evening Standard Lee Cook, Principal Clerk of the Chambers of Timothy Raggatt QC, complained that the newspaper had inaccurately identified him as the victim of murder. The victim was, in fact, a different Lee Cook, who was a clerk in another chambers. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published the following apology, two days later: “In early editions on Tuesday, 24 July, we wrongly reported that Mr Cook was employed as a barrister’s clerk by the chambers of Timothy Raggatt QC. Mr Cook was, in fact, at the chambers of Robin Purchas QC. We regret any misunderstanding or distress the error may have caused.”

Western Morning News The Cornish Birds of Prey Centre complained that an article had inaccurately claimed that its racing pigs would be barbequed at an end of season banquet. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper removed the article from its website and annotated its records to prevent republication.

Whitby Gazette Eden Blyth complained that a letter he had submitted for publication in the newspaper had appeared in an edited form that altered its original context. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complainant agreed to resolve his complaint when the newspaper published the following correction: “We would like to make clear that a letter published on 17 July from Eden Blyth was the subject of editorial alteration and the published version did not therefore represent the views of Mr Blyth. We apologise to Mr Blyth for any distress this may have caused.”

Hamilton Advertiser John McLean, of Hamilton, complained that the newspaper had invaded his privacy by including his address and a photo of his house in a report of an incident that had occurred at the property. (Clause 3) Resolution: The newspaper sent a private letter of apology to the complainant and agreed to remove his precise address and the photograph from its website.

Evening Standard A woman complained that the newspaper had published a photograph of her whilst she was removing graffiti from a bus stop and inaccurately suggested that she was in fact the perpetrator of the vandalism. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper published a correction and apology which the complainant had requested to be anonymous. The wording was as follows: “Graffiti report – In a report on 19 June it was said that a woman was pictured writing graffiti at a bus stop. She was in fact removing it. We are happy to clarify this and apologise for any embarrassment.”

Evening Telegraph Theresa Ferguson, of Northants, complained that the newspaper had printed details of a writ against her, despite the writ having been dropped before publication. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved when the newspaper, which had taken a report on the writ from an agency and did not know that it had been dropped, published the following update: “The case against a woman accused of e-mailing a list of company contacts to her husband minutes before she quit her job has been dropped. Milton Keynes company Tensator issued a writ against Theresa Ferguson, of Wheatley Avenue, in Corby, accusing her of e-mailing the list before she handed in her notice. The writ stated Ms Ferguson, who entirely disputed the claim, then went to work for a rival company and by e-mailing the list she was in breach of restrictive covenants in her contract. The High Court writ was made publicly available on June 18 but the case was resolved before the publication of a previous article in the Evening Telegraph and no action was taken or was forthcoming towards Ms Ferguson.”

Watford Observer Graham Simpson, chairman of Watford Leisure Plc, complained that an article which reported the contents of a letter sent to the Watford Supporters Trust about the departure of two board members contained a number of inaccuracies. (Clause 1) Resolution: The complaint was resolved privately between the parties.

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